Worldwide fifty billion chickens are produced annually for meat and egg consumption. Consumer demand drives ever increasing yield levels as producers try to manage and contain their overhead costs, lower pollution, and implement sustainable farming practices. Yet, the outcome of more intensive management using current poultry production applications places the birds under greater stress, decreasing their immune system and increasing the need for precautionary medications, antibiotics, and feed additives to prevent infectious outbreaks.
Currently, standard poultry production houses average 20,000 birds in a 400 ft. by 50 ft. building for approximately 57 days. (Industry standards require 0.8 sq. ft. of floor space per bird). Tunnel ventilation in these one story structures typically does not produce ventilation conducive to optimal air flow and even distribution of temperatures for birds in different areas of the structure. Adding to poor air flow is the lack of air quality due to buildup of gases, mold and microbes in the bed litter, and bird effluent covering the poultry house floor. The circulating air becomes harmful to the respiratory systems of not only the birds but the growers who tend them.
Traditional broiler chicken farming begins by taking eggs from laying houses and sending them to a large scale hatchery. The eggs are incubated at the hatchery for about 18 days. At about 21 days, the eggs will hatch. The chicks are then sexed, and checked for any birth defects and abnormalities. The healthy selected chicks are then transported at 1-2 days old to the broiler houses where they will live on average for 57 days. After 57 days the chickens will be considered full grown and/or reached the desired weight for slaughter and then may be collected and taken to a processing plant.
Before a new batch of chicks are brought into the house, the bed litter will be heated, aired out and cleaned to reduce the ammonia levels and CO2 levels. This can take a minimum of 7 days, therefore the chicken house may be out of operation for at least 6 weeks of the year. The bed litter will be used again for a number of chicken flocks where the chicks are exposed to higher levels of ammonia that can lead to respiratory diseases, and ammonia burns to skin and eyes which can lead to increases in mortality rates.